Image sensing apparatus

Abstract

An object of this invention is to provide an image sensing apparatus which shortens the photographing interval in single shooting and sequential shooting. To achieve this object, an image signal corresponding to an object image is read from an image sensing element to output image data by the processes of a signal processing circuit and A/D converter. An image processing circuit integrates the image data output from the image sensing element for white balance processing. An image display circuit performs processing of displaying on a display an object image during imaging on the image sensing element. A system controller so controls as to cause the image processing circuit to perform integral processing of the image data for the white balance during read of an image signal from the image sensing element, and cause the display to display the object image after integral processing ends.

1. An image sensing apparatus comprising:
 an image sensing device which outputs image data obtained by an image sensing element as RAW data; 
 a memory which has a first area for temporarily storing first RAW data obtained in a first image sensing operation of said image sensing device and a second area for temporarily storing second RAW data obtained in a second image sensing operation next to the first image sensing operation of said image sensing device; 
 a white balance integration device which integrates at least one of the first and second RAW data readout from said first area and said second area, respectively, for a white balance processing; 
 a white balance calculation device which calculates a white balance coefficient on the basis of the integration result by the white balance integration device; 
 an image processing device which performs image processing of the first and second RAW data readout from said first area and said second area, respectively, in accordance with the white balance coefficient calculated by said white balance calculation device 
 a display device which displays a live view image during imaging on the image sensing element; and 
 a control device which controls said memory, said white balance integration device, said image processing device, and said display device,
 wherein, said control device controls so that, said image processing device processes a color space conversion for the first RAW data readout from said first area in accordance with start of reading the second RAW data from the image sensing element in the second image sensing operation, the white balance integral processing for the second RAW data by said white balance integration device and the color space conversion for first RAW data by said image processing device processes are performed in parallel during reading of the second RAW data from the image sensing element, said display device is inhibited from displaying the live view image during the integral processing for the second RAW data and after the integral processing for the second RAW data is finished but the color space conversion processing for the first RAW data is not finished, said display device is started to display the live view image in response that the color space conversion processing for the first RAW data is finished after the integral processing for the second RAW data is finished, and said white balance calculation device calculates the white balance coefficient of the second RAW data after said display device starts to display the live view image. 
 
 
   
   
     2. The apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a defect correction device which corrects a defective pixel portion of image data when the image sensing element has a defective pixel,
 wherein said control device controls said defect correction device in such a way that said defect correction device corrects a defective pixel portion of the image data while said display device displays the object image after said white balance calculation device calculates the white balance coefficient.